3D Simulation Goes Mainstream
Blog 3/30/2015 1 commentSimulation is no longer reserved for large automotive and aerospace companies. Even small companies in the life sciences are now benefiting from simulation.

The Smart Oil Field
Blog 3/25/2015 Post a commentActive data management within the smart oil field is resulting in a push for more open standards, vendor cooperation, and wireless networking solutions.

Getting Your Hands on the Cypress PSoC
Blog 3/23/2015 Post a commentThe Programmable System-on-Chip BLE dev kit from Cypress Semiconductor only costs $49, and the kit makes it easy to build sophisticated devices such as glucose and heart-rate monitors. Learn more about it and how to use it during an upcoming Continuing Education Center course.

Mechanical Engineer Salaries in 15 US Cities
Blog 3/20/2015 1 commentIf you’re a mechanical engineer, your salary will probably be determined largely by where you live-- and not just by region. Salaries can vary greatly within the same state, according to Glassdoor.com. Salary levels don’t seem to be set by cost of living -- ME salaries are high in Seattle yet low in New York City. Beyond all else, competition for engineers is probably the strongest factor.

NPE2015: 5 Must-See Exhibits
Blog 3/20/2015 Post a commentAll indications are that this year's NPE event, which begins Monday, March 23 in Orlando, Fla., will be the largest in its history: More exhibitors, more international participation, and more attendees.

7 Silent Project Killers
Blog 3/19/2015 2 commentsThere are few things more discouraging to an engineer than pouring their heart, sweat and tears into a project only to have it fail. Failure can and does provide insights and growth experiences to those involved but the loss of time and effort can strike a devastating blow. There are many reasons that an embedded systems project can fail but there are seven key indicators that a project is dying a slow and silent death.

GE Gets Scientific About BBQ
Blog 3/19/2015 2 commentsNothing says Texas better than BBQ, and that’s where General Electric chose to hang its hat at SXSW, with a BBQ Research Center a short walk from Austin’s Convention Center to lure the hungry crowds. Hard to miss with its 12-foot super smoker, the firm said it was seeking whether it could use sensors and biofeedback to engineer the perfect plate of ribs.

How EE Salaries Rank in 15 US Cities
Blog 3/18/2015 5 commentsIf you’re an electrical engineering, your salary may depend significantly on where you live -- and that’s not just by region. Salaries vary greatly even within the same state, according to Glassdoor.com.

Q&A with David Goldberg: Universities Must Change to Keep Up with ‘Era of Design’
Blog 3/18/2015 15 commentsFollowing a course that was established nine centuries ago, the type of education potential engineers and other students are getting at traditional universities just isn’t cutting it anymore. That’s the opinion of David Goldberg, founder of ThreeJoy Associates Inc., emeritus professor of engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and distinguished academic partner of Olin College.

The Path to Innovation Success Is Never Straight
Blog 3/16/2015 7 commentsConventional wisdom in product design, development, and engineering dictates a certain order of movement: You listen to customers and look at their application needs, perform market research, collaborate with them on conceptualization and feasibility, and go through the rest of the engineering design wringer and -- voila -- you have a product innovation or, better yet, an innovative product.

Here are the Best Women in Technology on TV and Film
Blog 3/12/2015 1 commentThe influence of female portrayals in media is undeniable. To that end the Entertainment Industries Council (EIC), the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT), and Google have joined forces for the SET Award for Portrayal of a Female in Technology.

Injectable Plastic Could Save Your Life
Blog 3/12/2015 Post a commentA new injectable polymer developed by researchers at the University of Washington (UW; Seattle) could strengthen blood clots and save countless lives on the battlefield, in rural areas and anywhere else where immediate medical treatment may not be available.

Thunder Cloud Lamp Brings the Storm Indoors
Blog 3/11/2015 24 commentsDesigned by Richard Clarkson of Richard Clarkson Studio, a product, lighting, and furniture design studio based in New Zealand and New York, Cloud was inspired by Hurricane Sandy, which ravaged the East Coast in 2012.

8 Views of Hot Manufacturing Tech
Blog 3/11/2015 1 commentThe range of new technology hitting the scene is nothing short of impressive. These days, everything on the plant floor is touched by advances in connectivity, motion control, safety, security, robotics, and iHMI, and all of the new technology has an eye toward energy efficiency. This ain’t the Boomers’ plant. It's not even the Gen X plant; it’s the Millennial plant.

How CAD Systems Are Fitting Into the Digital Manufacturing Lifecycle
Blog 3/11/2015 1 commentComputer-aided design (CAD) tools in recent years have given design engineers the crucial capability to develop solid geometric models of parts and assemblies and share them among engineering teams. However, product design teams face growing challenges in the complex web of R&D and manufacturing operations wrapped around today's business environment.

2015 Salaries for 10 Engineering Disciplines
Blog 3/10/2015 6 commentsTake a look at the new data on salaries; you will notice there is little change over the past year. A few of the salaries went up, though none went up more than $1,000 per year -- roughly the same as inflation.

The Growing Problem of e-Waste
Blog 3/10/2015 6 commentsUsers clamoring for new devices or waiting impatiently for the next iteration of a favored product is music to the ears of the average electronics OEM. At the same time, around the world, these same OEMs are coming face to face with the growing issue of e-waste.

How to Land a Job as an Engineering Intern or Co-op
Blog 3/9/2015 2 commentsIf you’re an engineering student, chances are good that you’re not planning to spend your summer vacation sitting on the beach. Instead, you’re probably looking for a summer internship, if you haven’t found one already. Internships are an important part of an engineering education.

Industrial workplaces are governed by OSHA rules, but this isn’t to say that rules are always followed. While injuries happen on production floors for a variety of reasons, of the top 10 OSHA rules that are most often ignored in industrial settings, two directly involve machine design: lockout/tagout procedures (LO/TO) and machine guarding.

Focus on Fundamentals consists of 45-minute on-line classes that cover a host of technologies. You learn without leaving the comfort of your desk. All classes are taught by subject-matter experts and all are archived. So if you can't attend live, attend at your convenience.